The North York Moors – forged by nature, shaped by generations. Come and explore our National Park – 554 square miles of secluded dales, magical moors, ancient woodland, historic sites and 26 miles of stunning coastline, all easily reached from York, Teesside and County Durham. Read about our work here, and then pay us a visit!

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Our Senior Archaeologist is taking phased retirement, so before he goes he has been asked to reflect on his time with the North York Moors National Park.

Graham Lee – Senior Archaeological Conservation Officer

How do I sum up a career lasting over a quarter of a century in a few paragraphs? It is a strange feeling to have 26 years seemingly flash by so fast.

I started work for the North York Moors National Park in April 1990, having previously worked in the archaeology section of North Yorkshire County Council since the summer of 1983. I had decided many years before that I loved the north of England and had no desire to return to my southern ‘roots’.

One of my first tasks with the National Park was the completion of a management survey of one of our large estates, encompassing moorland and large blocks of forestry. This quickly whetted my appetite for the excitement of making new archaeological discoveries – often very subtle earthworks, no more than a handful of centimetres in depth or relief – despite an exceptional tradition of previous high quality archaeological fieldwork in the region. Working solo in large blocks of conifers was a good test of dedication – crawling under the branches of dense stands of conifers searching for vague earthworks mapped in the 1890s – and the steadiness of nerve, when yet another wretched pheasant exploded out of the leafy vegetation where I was just about to step! In recent years the delights of discovery have been broadening thanks to new technology and techniques, especially LiDAR which provides an aerial view through tree and ground-cover vegetation of archaeological remains that were previously hidden or obscured.

If you have a passion for the past, the North York Moors have something for pretty much everyone – enigmatic Neolithic rock art; surviving prehistoric pitted boundaries and avenues; upstanding Bronze Age funerary monuments and field systems; Roman encampments; medieval castles and monasteries…

Human industry is also well represented – from the earliest iron industry through the search for alum into the full-blown “iron rush” of the mid 19th century, the exploitation of coal and jet, and the plentiful local rivers managed to provide motive power for a range of watermills. Research and conservation priorities relating to these local industries finally led to our new HLF Landscape Partnership Scheme, This Exploited Land of Iron. Some 15 or so years in gestation, it is very rewarding to see new generations captured by the excitement of the important remains of our 19th century ironstone industry and the associated development of early railways – although the original scheme for a canal link between Whitby and Pickering would have been a sight to behold and a major tourist attraction if it had ever been built.

Into the 20th century, remains survive here from both world wars – in the form of coastal defences, army camps as well as troop training and target practice areas. Finds are still occasionally made of 2nd World War unexploded ordnance in former training areas across the North York Moors, in particular after the wildfire on Fylingdales Moor in 2003 which affected two square kilometres of heather moorland.

Although an environmental disaster – the severity of the fire in reducing the shallow peat cover to ash, this event was an archaeological revelation. Virtually everywhere you looked, subtle archaeological remains became visible, including the drip gulleys around former prehistoric round houses, low stony prehistoric boundaries and cairns, large numbers of previously unrecorded examples of Neolithic rock art and occasional shallow trenches which resembled grave cuts with a subsiding infill. As numbers of the latter quickly increased their interpretation became clear – slit trenches from 2nd World War troop training. I remember my first visit to the site after the fire when the ground was reddened and blackened, covered in ash and still smouldering; few trees had survived and many had toppled after the peat holding their roots in place had been burnt away. Flashes of colour were very noticeable, such as an adder emerging from its underground refuge having survived the conflagration. A major project ensued, both to protect and restore the moorland habitat and to record and investigate the breath-taking remains of surviving archaeology.

There have always been new specialisms to get to grips with. A visit to the Scheduled Rosedale iron calcining kilns with the Park’s Conservation Director at the time revealed that a portion of one of the kilns’ firebrick linings had collapsed the previous winter. This led to a major conservation project to stabilise these huge monuments which ran for three years in the mid 1990s, a forerunner of This Exploited Land which will continue the efforts to conserve these monumental sites 20 years on.

It has been such a pleasure working with like-minded and dedicated professionals, both in my own National Park, but also with colleagues throughout the family of British National Parks, and Historic England and Natural England. We’ve shared experiences and ideas to the betterment of our discipline from research to management, and also shared the excitement of attempting to bring our subject, which we love, to life for anyone who cares to see and to get involved.

The National Park Authority is currently looking for a new Senior Archaeologist to lead on archaeology in the North York Moors. The closing date for applications is 26 January 2017.

Alex Cripps – Conservation Graduate Trainee

A week or so ago Kirsty Brown, our Conservation Projects Assistant, and I carried out our second bird survey for the Hawk and Owl Trust, covering a one kilometre square on Fylingdales Moor in the North York Moors. It was a perfect early morning – the sun was shining, the wind was calm and the birds were singing! We recorded all the birds we could see, including those in flights and any we could hear. The most abundant bird we recorded was Meadow pipit, closely followed by Skylark, both are beautiful little birds frequently seen on our moors, with characteristic calls and flight. Both species are in decline nationally.

These results combined with the results from our first survey in June have been sent to Dr John Edwards of the Hawk and Owl Trust. Dr Edwards compiles an annual report, looking at the numbers of different bird species present on this Moor as reported by a number of surveyors, and compares the results to previous years. The survey will run again next year which will be the tenth year in a row of the survey – a fantastic achievement. Consistent repeat surveying can build up evidence of trends. This research is used to help manage Fylingdales Moor in the best way for biodiversity to flourish.

During our survey it wasn’t just us and the birds that were out and about – amongst the heather and cotton grass we also encountered a common lizard, tiger beetles, a noctuid moth larvae, many Northern/Oak eggar moth caterpillars and several spiders!

Alex Cripps – Conservation Graduate Trainee

Up very bright and early a week or so back, the Ecology Team and I carried out our first 2013 bird survey on a one kilometre square on Fylingdales Moor. We recorded all the birds we could see or hear (including curlew, kestrel, linnet, red grouse, skylark, willow warbler, yellowhammer and many meadow pipits), and I will be repeating the survey in the next few weeks to provide a fuller picture of what birds are using the Moor this year.

The results go to Dr John Edwards of the Hawk and Owl Trust who compiles an annual report looking at the numbers of different bird species present on this Moor which the Trust manage on behalf of the owner. This is the 9th year of the survey and it is a valuable piece of research helping to provide information about possible changes in the Fylingdales Moor bird populations. The Trust can use any evidence of detrimental trends to try and adjust their management if that could help.

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Located just to the north of York and surprisingly close to Teesside, the North York Moors National Park is a beautiful landscape of stunning heather moors, spectacular coast, ancient woodland, distinctive dales, dark skies and historic sites.
It's a great place for cycling and walking with miles of paths and tracks for you to explore.